


Marionette

by HandsOffMyAppleJuice



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Bad Friends, Bad Parenting, Blood, Changing POV, Character Death, Cop Steve Harrington, Crying, F/F, F/M, Final Battle, Gen, Hawkins (Stranger Things), Hawkins National Laboratory, Heavy Angst, Hurt Steve Harrington, Kidnapping, Lots of Crying, Murder, Possession, Self-Hatred, Slurs, Steve Harrington Has Bad Parents, Steve Harrington Has Powers, Steve Harrington Needs Love, Steve Harrington Needs a Hug, Steve Harrington-centric, Ted Wheeler is useful, The Upside Down, Vomiting, i guess
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-01
Updated: 2020-05-10
Packaged: 2021-02-28 18:35:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 7,514
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23421769
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HandsOffMyAppleJuice/pseuds/HandsOffMyAppleJuice
Summary: It got him. Not the demogorgon. The Mind Flayer. It got him.“He made me do it.”He didn’t want to kill them. He didn’t want to take them. He doesn’t want to hurt them. It just needs to stop. It needs to stop with him. Everyone knows. Everyone being hurt. He needs to stop the monster inside of him. He needs help.He needs help now.
Relationships: Erica Sinclair & Nancy Wheeler, Jonathan Byers/Nancy Wheeler, Joyce Byers & Steve Harrington, Joyce Byers/Jim "Chief" Hopper, Robin Buckley & The Party, Robin Buckley/Original Female Character(s), Steve Harrington & Erica Sinclair, Steve Harrington & Everyone, Steve Harrington & Jim "Chief" Hopper, Steve Harrington & Nancy Wheeler, Steve Harrington & The Party
Comments: 4
Kudos: 67





	1. This is Home ~ Cavetown

Hawkins, Indiana was a peaceful place, two years after Starcourt. They found Hopper, closed the gate (again), and the Byers even moved back after the first year. Unfortunately, all of Hawkins knew about the Upside Down but in a way, it was good. If they didn’t, Hopper probably wouldn’t be back and now some people have an explanation for the previous events.

Tommy Hagan and Carol Perkins both saw the demogorgon at the party. Claudia Henderson saw D’art but denied his existence at first. Many people saw the flayed perform odd actions on the Fourth of July. The Hollands had the real explanation for their daughter’s death. Now Scott Clarke had an explanation for some of his old students' questions.

But there was something wrong in the air. But no one felt it, not even the ever aware monster hunters. Not the girl who has telekinetic powers. Not even her. 

See, it was wrong of me to say that all of Hawkins knew about the Upside Down. The two people that didn’t know helped cause the next big thing. Linda and Charles Harrington. They’re never home, so why would it matter if they knew or not.

Now, you must be asking,  _ how _ , did they cause it? They neglected their only son. They didn’t care about him, they told him many times how much of a failure he was. That was worse than opening the gate. But we’ll get to the topic of the gate in a later paragraph. But first, Steve.

A few weeks before getting a job at the movie rental store, he applied for the last school he’d ever expected. The police academy near Chicago. A few days later, he got the acceptance letter. He dropped it in surprise, thinking he wouldn’t have gotten in. A party was held near Cerebro, so that they could contact the Byers and El. He packed his bags immediately after coming back home, high spirits fueling his veins. But when he was finally leaving, his parents were home for the time being. That was one cut of the string. 

_ “Where do you think you’re going?” _

__ _ “Off to the police academy in Chicago. Please move, you’re standing in front of the door.” _

__ _ “You got into a school? As a police officer?” _

__ _ “Well… yes. Chief… Hopper had inspired me to take this path.” _

__ _ “Why would he? Yes he’s been proclaimed  _ ‘hero of the town’ _ but you probably got placed in his office for screwing around.” _

He left. He came back for a two week winter break and that was when the town got involved with bringing Hopper back from the Russians, stopping them from opening the gate again. Luckily, no creatures made it to their side of the portal. Even though he was one of the first people who knew, he was pushed aside. Robin got more attention than he did. He left, feeling alone. That was the second cut. The first summer he came back, everything had gotten back to normal. Apparently the town had a better mayor who made a bunker in case the Upside Down returned. No one bothered to show him where it was, until a month into the summer break. He still lived in his parent’s house which developed a layer of dust since the family was gone. This summer was the longest one yet since Dustin went back to Camp Know Where and the other kids were busy with teenage drama. Jonathan and Nancy were back from their colleges for the summer as well. Robin was off on vacation somewhere so Steve was left alone with his thoughts. The string was wearing thin.

Nothing big happened for the next year until the summer of 1987. Steve was walking in the forest when he felt a tug in his chest, like someone was pulling a string tied to him. He followed where his footsteps were leading him, barely noticing that he was walking in the abandoned lab that was loosely monitored. He walked into the room where the sealed gate was kept. He watched with horror as he saw it open up, no laser or super powered child opening it. He started to run when he saw the vines creep through but was too slow. He was dragged in, no one hearing his screams.

But now comes your question, what happened? What opened the gate? The fact that the creatures didn’t appear was for a reason. The Mind Flayer was building up its strength to open up the gate from that side. It had to pry open the portal itself, but the small tear wasn’t big enough. It needed a host. It could feel the broken soul in the town. The one that left for a time and went to help the father of Eleven. It knew it had to have that soul. It only had to play with the strings, like a puppeteer. It used a lot of power to make his grand reveal to the kid but managed to use the vines to drag him in. 

Oh, how Hawkins will be surprised.


	2. It Took Me by Surprise ~ Mina Mena

Steve woke up in a dark space. He wasn’t sure if he dreamt about the gate opening but he hoped not. But this definitely did not feel like his bed or couch and he knew that he didn’t fall asleep in the middle of the forest. He sat up when he felt it. The slimy texture of vines. He moved quickly and got up, noticing he was in the tunnels.

“Shit…” he whispered.

He started running down a random path, trying not to think of the danger that’s around every corner. Eventually he saw the faint light coming from the ceiling of the tunnel. He’s tall enough to where he could jump out. It took a couple tries but he was out. He was panting. Steve tried to even out his breaths since inhaling the poisonous air quicker wouldn’t work out in the long run. Observing his surroundings, he realized it was the place where he and the kids first entered the tunnels. If he remembered correctly, the Camero would only be a few feet away from where he was resting on all fours. He shakily stood up then felt the hair on the back of his neck rise up. He remembered Will would have the same feeling during Starcourt whenever the Mind Flayer would show up.

As if on cue, he turned around and there it was, in it’s full, horrible glory. This was his first time really seeing it. Besides the flesh and gore version of it, he never saw it’s cloudy form. He knew he was screwed. No one knew where he was. Not Robin, not Erica, not even Dustin, who was at his house an hour before he went on that goddamned walk.

It was when Steve was running that he remembered Dustin and Lucas telling him about what happened on the field with Will. How he looked like he was having a seizure which was later discovered to be the Mind Flayer possessing him. Will’s words were running through his head.

_ “I had to leave the school. It looked like there were vines covering everything.” _

He outran the tunnels and now he was running to town.

_ “I couldn’t cry out for help. I could only run.” _

His lungs were hurting, whether it was from a vigorous amount of running or the air, he didn’t know.

_ “I made it into the field when I remembered what Bob told me. That I have to face it and yell,  _ ‘go away!’ _ ” _

Steve kept running. He couldn’t stop. He could see the former Byers’ residence almost ran past it. A vine tripped him and at the speed he was running at, he hit the ground hard and he was left dazed.

_ “I kept on screaming those words to it but… it got me. As it stood over me, one of its legs came towards me and… engulfed me.” _

He could only turn around and face the terror that was looking down on him. Like Will, one of the legs came towards him. He stood up and tried to brace himself for what was to come.

_ “It was like a tornado in there. Wind was stinging my face and I could feel my hair flying in all directions.” _

It nearly took all of Steve’s willpower to start breathing again. The force of the wind practically took his breath away.

_ “Then it happened.” _

He saw the tendrils of the monster come towards him.

_ “It forced itself into me. Every crevice where he could enter.” _

_ The monster looking down at Billy. _

He choked as one went down his throat.

_ Piercing Billy’s body, killing him. _

He wanted to cry but instead of tears, the smoke like tentacle thing forced itself through his eyes.

There was so much pain. He was surprised that he hadn’t blacked out or even died yet. He wondered what was going to happen to the others. What will he do to them? What will the Mind Flayer use him for? 

And as suddenly as it started, it went away. He blacked out, not feeling the smoke like substance move further into his body or seeing the creature move away. The string was hanging on by a thread.

======

Steve gasped awake and sat upright on his bed. He swallowed the air, the healthy air. He looked at his hands, arms then touched his face. He was looking for the black veins that covered Billy but released a breath when he didn’t see any. The young adult went to get ready for the day, not realizing how early it was. It was after his shower when he saw his clock. 4:47 AM. He ended up dusting the house, feeling too nauseous to eat anything. He felt on edge, even jumping at the sound of the floorboard under his foot. But he reassured himself that if there was any danger, the kids would’ve told him. 

He just sat on the couch when he heard the car pull up. It was either Joyce and Hopper, or his parents. It seemed it was the latter. He heard the door unlock then heard their footsteps. They didn’t speak.

“Oh, Steven! We didn’t think you would be up!” Linda forced out.

Steve only hummed. “I dusted.”

“Oh, thank you.” She replied, going off into the kitchen.

He could feel his father’s eyes on the back of his head. Something rattled inside of him. It was… agitated. It wanted to be let out. Steve shook it off. Charles walked into his office, muttering about something. Steve remained there, trying to figure out the feeling in him. He must’ve sat there for awhile because his mother was calling his name. He walked into the dining room where there was breakfast being served. He sat between his parents and ate the eggs and bacon which were, oddly, flavorless. 

He wasn’t saying his mother was a bad cook, but even if it was bad, he should have tasted something, right? He eventually started staring at his plate with the fork hanging loosely in his hand.

“Steven? Are you okay?”

He looked at the woman and nodded. “Sorry.”

Breakfast continued with a strained silence, making the weird feeling in Steve grow into restlessness, the urge to do something.

“So… how is the police academy?” Linda inquired.

“It’s going well. I’m one of the best students in my class. They found out that I’m dyslexic and ADHD but I’ve been getting better at reading and the ADHD actually helps in some ways.”

“Dyslexic? Are you sure you aren’t just stupid?” The man finally said.

Steve curled into himself slightly. “They thought that at first but they did tests and I have dyslexia.”

There was a muttered, “Yeah, right.”

The feeling turned into a mix. It was confusing, trying to make sense of what it was. Restlessness, resentment, hatred, the need to do something, the urge to break. Steve hated it. He’s never had these feelings recently, and  _ never _ to his parents. You do  _ not _ get mad at Charles Harrington. But it was like Steve didn’t have control over his body anymore.

“Maybe you’re the stupid one, father.”

The man looked at his son. Disappointment and anger showed on his face. “Steven. I don’t tolerate that tone of voice. And how  _ dare _ you say that to me. You’re dismissed from the table and go to your room.”

The calmness of his voice made Steve almost run upstairs. He was pacing around the space, wondering what happened and tried to ignore the mix of feelings and the twisting in his gut. Did it have something to do with the dream? He decided to look at his shoes that he wore into the forest because he still found slime in the pair he wore in 1984. He grabbed them and low and behold, there was still gunk on those shoes. He dropped them in shock and ran over to his radio to call out a Code Red. As he was about to grasp it, his hand froze.


	3. All Eyes On Me ~ Caleb Hyles Cover

He tried to force his hand to grab it but it was like his nerves were cut off. Or like it wasn’t under his control. His arm was forced to his side and he was standing still. He felt a tingling sensation on his shoulder. He could move his stiff head to face it. What he saw was a Venom like creature. It was coming out of his back and through his white shirt. It was then that he realized that it was the Mind Flayer. Somehow, it managed to put part of itself into his body and who knows what it’ll do like this. 

**_Hello, Steve Harrington._ **

His breath hitched when he heard the dark voice that wasn’t hidden behind Billy’s voice. “H-hello. Wh-what do you want?”

**_Oh, straight to the point are we? I’m surprised you don’t know already but by scanning through your memories, you weren’t there. You were in a Russian facility._ **

“Stay out of my memories. Actually, get out of my body.”

It laughed. It echoed in his head then it hit Steve. It wasn’t actually talking, it was speaking telepathically.

**_Aren’t you smart? Big words. You should show that to your father._ **

Steve shook his head. “No…”

**_But you felt that anger, that hatred when he called you stupid._ **

“Oh yeah? Well, I felt restlessness and an urge to do something. And if you’re messing around with my head, you should know that I’ve never felt those emotions around my parents. Why would it change now, after I've been called stupid by my parents repeatedly?”

Silence. He felt the stinging in his back and figured that the smoke demon thing merged back with his body. He felt nothing for a bit and moved his limbs experimentally. Back in control for the time being. But he had to try again. He reached for the radio but then images flashed through his head.

_ “Go away, go  _ away _!” _

__ _ The serum being injected into his face. _

__ _ The people bursting into piles of gore. _

__ _ A burning poker being forced into his side. _

__ _ So many screeching rats. _

__ _ Being punched by Billy repeatedly. _

The sounds faded from his mind as did the images. He felt like he could feel the pain of all those people. He gasped as he got over the phantom pains. He would’ve gone unconscious but then he started having this weird feeling take over his body. Steve wasn’t moving his body, it was the Mind Flayer moving him.

**_Wrong idea._ **

Steve could only watch as he moved over to where the bat was being kept. 

_ No…  _

He knew what the Mind Flayer was going to do. But he couldn’t stop his body or the creature. He hated this out of body experience. His body carried the bat to the dining room where his parents were finishing up their meal, his dish gone from the table. Like he wasn’t even there. It was his father who saw him first, but not the weapon.

“Steven, I thought I told you to stay in your room.”

Linda briefly turned around but managed to catch sight of the bat. She turned to fully face her son. “Steven? What are you going to do with that?”

His face remained neutral as he, no the Mind Flayer, responded, “I kill monsters with this bat. I just found two more.”

Linda turned to face her husband with a worried expression on her face. It wasn’t good enough for the Mind Flayer. Steve could feel it growl in his mind, it’s anger that his parents weren’t afraid. His hand was raised and part of the Mind Flayer reached out and grabbed Charles’ neck. Linda screamed as she stared at the extension of Steve’s arm and tears were streaming down her face when her husband made choking sounds.

“Steven! Why are you doing this?! What is happening?!”

Steve fought against the Mind Flayer. He wasn’t able to reign in the monster but he was able to regain some control of his body. Tears started streaming down his own face as he looked to his mother.

“I-I’m s-sorry. I c-can’t control it. I can’t… I’m too weak.” He turned to his father, who was getting enough air. “You’re right. I’m weak. I’m so,  _ so  _ sorry. I can’t stop him.” 

**_What are you doing?!_ **

Steve turned to his mom, and said,”Run.”

She did after a moment of hesitation but it was too late. The Mind Flayer regained control of Steve and used the young adult’s other arm to grab her, dropping the bat. She shrieked as he grabbed her with his actual arm. He forced her to face her husband.

“Say goodbye to your husband, the man that abused your son, Steven.”

Steve heard his voice get distorted with the monster’s deep tones. He barely registered the two adults mouthing the words, “I love you,” to each other. The smoke like extension tightened its hold on his father’s neck and the man started gasping for air. The woman was sobbing as she watched the life drain out of Charles’ eyes. The arm dropped the body and retracted back into the boy’s body. He let go of her and let her scramble away for a second while he picked up the bat. He walked towards her slowly, intimidating her. 

“Steven… stop this.” She sobbed out.

“Haven’t you been listening to him? It’s not him.”

Her eyes widened when he raised the nail bat over his head.

“Night night.”

_ Snap. _


	4. Twisted ~ MISSO

Hopper was having a good morning. He and his fiancé (and isn’t that good to call Joyce that) were relaxing on the couch and listening to the faint argument of the kids trying to make them breakfast. Once a week, the kids would try to make the adults breakfast. El loved learning how to make food, Will helped to provide recipes, and Jonathan ended up making a majority of the meal. Right now they were arguing over something healthier or sweet. El wanted to teach them how to make triple decker Eggo extravaganza while Will was nominating chocolate chip pancakes. Jonathan was trying to calm them down and being the middle ground.

“I could live with this.” He said.

Joyce smiled up at him. “Well you do.” She responded, kissing him on his chin.

He rested his head on hers and sat there in bliss, listening to the friendly argument. But it was soon interrupted by the phone ringing.

“I got it!” Will shouted.

He ran from the kitchen to the hallway where they had the phone hung up.

“Hello, Hopper-Byers residence.”

“ _ W-Will? _ ”

“Steve? Is that you?”

“ _ I-I n-need. _ ” Heavy breaths were heard on the other end and muttering that was all jumbled together.

“What? What do you need? I can barely understand you.”

“ _ H-he killed them. Th-there’s blood. H-he m-made me w-watch. S-so m-much b-blood. _ ”

Will was panicking. He tried to keep calm for the young adult but what do you say to someone who just witnessed murder? “Do you need Hopper? El?” 

“ _ H-Hopper. Please h-hurry. _ ”

Will placed his hand on the receiver. “Hop? Steve’s calling for you.” He turned to see the man walking over, concerned. The others obviously heard Will’s side of the conversation. It was minimal but it was enough for them to worry.

“I got it kid.” He took the receiver from Will, who backed off a bit but stayed. “Steve?”

“ _ Hopper. _ ”

“What’s going on, kid?”

He heard the heaving breaths mixed with sobs. “ _ M-my p-parents. Th-they w-were k-killed. H-he m-made me…” _

“He made you what? Talk to me kid. Where are you?”

“ _ H-home. H-he made me w-watch. Wh-when he killed th-them. _ ”

“Are you hurt?”

“ _ N-no. _ ”

“Stay where you are, we’re coming over.”

“ _ NO! _ ”

Hopper jumped in surprise and almost dropped the phone. “Is he still there?” Steve didn’t respond. “Kid? Please tell me, what’s wrong?”

Steve made a choking noise on the other end. Hopper was about to hang up and run over there when he said, “ _ J-just you. Please. I’m a-alone. _ ”

“Okay kid, I’m coming over now.”

He hung up. Shit. It was a good morning as well but apparently it’s just Hawkins thing to have one bad thing a year. Hopefully it was only a human problem, not an Upside Down problem. 

He pulled on his coat and made sure his radio was attached to it. Joyce walked up to him, the kids trailing behind her. 

“What’s wrong? What’s going on?”

“Problem at the Harringtons. I don’t know the specifics but his parents…”

“They’re dead,” Will said from behind Jonathan, “He told me. He was freaking out about how much blood there was…”

Joyce placed her hand above her mouth as she gasped. She turned back to Hopper. “Please make sure he’s okay. Be careful.”

“I will.”

He left, not knowing of the danger he was walking to.

~~~~~~

Steve felt the Mind Flayer release its hold on him for the time being. If he was still holding onto the bat, he would’ve dropped it. It was clever with cleaning up part of the crime scene and revising it. After it made him kill his mother, it made him do it again but to his father. He went to the back door and forced the locked door open, making it look like a forced entry. He walked near the pool and threw the bat into the water. Out there, the MInd Flayer forced him to bruise his arm by his own hand. His body was forced back inside and here he was. He looked into the kitchen as if by some miracle his parents were still alive.

He saw the bodies. The puncture holes from the nails with the combination of their bodies being hit with the bat. The blood. The blood that covered his hands, his clothes, and probably his face. The blood was messy whenever the bat flew back to make another hit. Steve shook then turned away to throw up the small amount of breakfast he had. He moved away so that he wasn’t near the mess and couldn’t look into the dining room. He rested against the wall and slid down. He was in some form of shock. There were tears streaming down his face but he made no noise or acknowledged them at all.

**_Interesting._ **

“Whatever you’re going to say, save it.”

He rested his head against the wall and looked up. The hallway table had a phone on it. He managed to pull it down and pulled the receiver off of the base and dialed the first number that came to mind, surprised that the monster inside him didn’t stop his fingers.

“ _ Hello, Hopper-Byers residence. _ ”

“W-Will _? _ ” He could sigh with relief that the kid was safe but he knew, no one would be safe.

“ _ Steve? Is that you? _ ”

“I-I n-need.” A brief memory flash of the Russians punching his face made him start breathing heavily. A warning.

“ _ What? What do you need? I can barely understand you. _ ”

“H-he killed them. Th-there’s blood. H-he m-made me w-watch. S-so m-much b-blood.”

He tried to tell Will. How the kid and Billy both got the message across. “ _ Do you need Hopper? El? _ ” 

“H-Hopper. Please h-hurry.”

He could faintly hear people on the other end but didn’t listen. How was he supposed to trick the monster inside of him? It could potentially read his thoughts. He didn’t know the specifics. It could be toying with him. He was scared. He was vulnerable. Steve felt the sobs build up in him but was cut off by a voice on the receiver.

“ _ Steve? _ ”

“Hopper.”

“ _ What’s going on, kid? _ ”

His breaths were mixed with the sobs as he spoke. “M-my p-parents. Th-they w-were k-killed. H-he m-made me… _ ” _

“ _ He made you what? Talk to me kid. Where are you? _ ”

“H-home. H-he made me w-watch. Wh-when he killed th-them.”

“ _ Are you hurt? _ ”

“N-no _. _ ”

“ _ Stay where you are, we’re coming over _ .”

“NO!”

He clapped his hand over his mouth. He just needed Hopper. He had to try and keep himself away from El as much as he could. “ _ Kid? Please tell me, what’s wrong? _ ”

Steve made a choking noise before he said, “J-just you. Please. I’m a-alone.”

“ _ Okay kid, I’m coming over now _ .”

He heard Hopper hanging up but kept the phone in his hand. It was stupid, calling the family where the main target of the thing possessing him was a part of. He brought his knees to his chest, seeing the bloodstains on his pants, white shirt, and bare feet. It reminded him of the outfit Billy was in when he died. He pounded his empty fist into the ground and grabbed his head with both hands, the phone still in his hand, and curled up into a ball. He reeked of blood but he wasn’t going to change. He couldn’t make his body move from where it was. There were sirens. He could hear them drive up to the house.

“This is the police! Steve we’re coming in!”

He didn’t look up when the door was kicked open, he only flinched. He felt a hand on his shoulder suddenly appear and he jumped back as much as he could. His head ended up hitting the wall but he didn’t register it.

“Whoa, whoa, calm down, Steve. It’s okay. It’s me, Hopper.”

Steve could only stare at the man for a minute, not acknowledging Powell and Callahan moving towards the kitchen. “H-Hop?”

“You’re okay, you’re safe.”

Steve didn’t show a response which worried Hopper. Before he could ask, the other two males were coming back. But Callahan went past them and went onto the front porch. Dry heaving was heard. Powell was looking pale himself.

“It’s a… I’m not entirely sure you want to go in there, Chief. It’s a massacre. No wonder the kid’s like this.”

“Stay near him. If you’re going to touch him, warn him.”

Powell nodded, not going to fight with his boss. Hopper walked towards the room that the two officers came from and avoided the vomit on the floor. It must be pretty bad to have two people get sick and one close to doing the same. He turned and saw it. There are no words to describe it. 

Terrible...

Horrifying...

He couldn’t find any others. He dared to come closer to Charles and saw the bruised neck. He was choked. It was obvious as to how they both died. He looked up and saw the back door wide open. He pulled out his guns and crept outside. There was no disturbance in the area but a shadow in the pool caught his eye. He looked into it and saw the murder weapon. Now that he’s examining it, the water was tinted pink from the fresh blood. He heard someone walk up behind him and saw Callahan there.

“You alright there?” Hopper inquired.

The officer nodded. “Sorry about that. It’s just… even with the whole, ‘getting you back’ thing last year, and finding out about the Upside Down… nothing could prepare me for that.”

Hopper sighed. “Yeah. Nothing is supposed to happen in Hawkins but, here we are.”


	5. Lifeboat ~ Heathers

Steve was sitting on the Hopper-Byers’ living room floor, wrapped in a blanket. He told the officers the fake story that the Mind Flayer was whispering into his ear about an hour ago.

_ He broke in and my parents were eating breakfast. He heard me playing music while I was getting ready and came to force me downstairs. But I tried to use my bat but he stopped me first and brought it down. He started to choke my father to intimidate us, and he did. My mom tried to run but he managed to stop her. I was frozen. I couldn’t stop it. He choked my father enough to make him faint. He used the bat to kill my mother then my father. He had me sit close and that’s how I got all th-this blood on me. I don’t know why he left me. _

He wanted to kill himself. The Mind Flayer already forced him to kill two people and it hasn’t even been 24 hours. He needed to get out of here. Away from El. He could hear faint voices coming from the kitchen but couldn’t hear them clearly. He watched as Will came into the room, holding a mug that had steam coming from the top. Will set it in front of the young adult and sat down.

“I called out a Code Red. Everyone knows but I didn’t tell them details and that you wanted to be left alone right now. Dustin did put up a fight though. But I’m your only visitor right now. How are you holding up?”

Steve hummed. He was staring at the mug. At the steam. He cocked his head in thought, trying to build some sort of barrier in his mind. He needs to resist. 

“It’s hot cocoa, if you were wondering. I could get you tea if you want it.”

Steve grabbed it and drank half of the mug. Will was surprised by that action. He didn’t wince at the heat but could hear the faint screeching in his mind, but knew that the Mind Flayer wasn’t completely gone. He made eye contact with the teen.

“You know, it would be a good day for a trip to the sauna.”

“Wh-what? What are you talking about?”

“It would be a good time to let things loose, get stuff out. It worked for Billy. He told me of how his dad is an asshole and that night, when he kinda beat me up, he told me that it was Neil’s fault. ‘He made me do it.’ That’s what he said. I kinda need that.”

Will’s eyes widened as he realized the message Steve was trying to say.

“Is… is it in you?”

“What? The M-”

He groaned as the memory of Billy smashing a plate over his head flashed through his mind.

“Steve, are you okay?”

“Just a headache.” He drank the rest of the hot cocoa and sighed. “Why don’t you tell your mom and Hopper about my suggestion? Please?”

Will nodded and ran out. When the boy was safely out of the way, Steve groaned and clutched his head. 

**_You shouldn’t have done that._ **

“I know I shouldn’t have, but I needed to.” He whispered.

He felt the rippling under his skin and shakily stood up, letting the blanket drop to the floor. He rushed to where he knew the back door was, having been in the house before to help move them in. He bumped into Jonathan, who was coming out of the bathroom.

“Whoa, Steve. Are you okay?” He questioned, eyeing the dried blood on his clothes.

“G-get away from m-me. Keep her away from me. Get her out of here.”

Before he could question who “she” was, Steve pushed the other boy aside and ran outside. The house was at the edges of the woods so he quickly disappeared in the trees.

======

“Steve’s gone.”

Will and the adults turned to Jonathan. The youngest brother saw how pale the eldest was and the shocked expression.

“What happened?” Joyce said.

“I don’t know. I was just coming out of the bathroom and he was there. I panicked when I saw his clothes because he was still wearing them so I asked him if he was alright and he told me to get away from him and keep ‘her’ away from him. I tried to ask who he was referring to but he ran out the back. I tried to follow him but he disappeared”

“I think he’s referring to El.” Will stated. 

“What do you mean? And where is she anyways?”

”She’s updating the others upstairs. She hasn’t seen Steve yet.” Hopper clarified. “Will just came to tell us that he thinks the Mind Flayer’s back and has possessed Steve.”

Will was quick to butt in. “He drank half of the hot cocoa before it got to a reasonable drinking temperature and looked the most relaxed he has been since he got here. He started talking about going to a sauna of all places to ‘let things loose’ and ‘get stuff out.’ He also started talking about Billy, how he told Steve about how Neil ‘made him do it’ on that night of 1984. I knew what he was trying to tell me and I tried to get a straight answer from him but he got a headache and downed the rest of the drink and told me to suggest his idea to Hopper.”

Jonathan ran a hand down his face as he groaned. “I thought we were done with this. Does anyone else know?”

The three shook their heads. “We should spread a warning. Across town as soon as we can.” Joyce said.

Hopper nodded and went to the front door. He threw on his jacket and faced his family. “Be sure you’re protected. Use the radio, get a weapon, anything. The bunker isn’t safe since Steve knows where it is. As well as the fact that he’s walking outside in broad daylight without burning himself. I’ll try to contact you when I’m coming back.”

Joyce nodded. Hopper ran out the door and into his truck. He thought of how Steve was in the recent years. He knew that the kid went to the academy for a majority of the year but whenever he came by, he wasn’t seen a whole lot and when he was, he seemed lonely. Not even Robin paid much attention to him, having a new girlfriend and all. Did that somehow push Steve into the Mind Flayer’s eyesight? Did they have a cause for this? 

He pulled into the station and ran inside. Flo and the officers looked up from their desks when he entered. Powell walked up to him with a piece of paper.

“Hey, Chief? Something’s not adding up with the Harrington murders.” Hopper cut him off before he could continue.

“Yeah I know. Flo,” she looked up at him, “Send out a message to the public. This is not a drill. The Mind Flayer has possessed Steve Harrington. We don’t know where he is currently. He just ran away from my house. Powell, Callahan, make sure no one goes to the bunker. Steve knows where it is so if that monster has access to his memories, it’ll know where everyone is.”

The others paled. Flo was reaching over to dial a number when the phone rang below her hand. She looked at her boss then picked it up.

“Hello, police station.”

She listened to someone on the other end. Hopper was praying that it wasn’t another murder. She nodded and said, “Don’t worry, Mrs. Sinclair. We’ll get on it right away. Spread the message to stay inside with protection. Don’t go to the bunker.”

The elderly woman hung up and turned to Hopper with tears in her eyes.

“Erica Sinclair is missing.”


	6. Hell to Your Doorstep ~ Caleb Hyles Cover

Steve knocked on the door of the Sinclair’s property. He waited a second before Mrs. Sinclair opened the door.

“Oh, Steve! I didn’t expect you. Would you like to come in? Lucas isn’t here but Erica is.”

“No, I came for Erica. I wanted to take her to get some ice cream.”

She was about to answer but then noticed his clothes. “What happened to you? Are you okay?”

“I’m fine. Just a painting accident. And I guess I just wanted to not wear shoes today. Weird habits, you know?”

She nodded hesitantly. The woman turned behind her and shouted, “Erica! Steve’s here!”

He heard running feet as the girl appeared. “Steve… what’re you doing here?”

“Free ice cream for life, remember?”

Erica nodded and looked at her mom. “It’s fine that you go, sweetie.” 

Erica ran out the door to the babysitter’s side, the door shutting behind her. They walked a fair distance, towards a gas station that had ice cream.

“I know that isn’t a painting accident, Steve.”

He turned to her, a level stare directed at her. She felt a shiver go down her spine when he didn’t look away.

“And what makes you say that, Erica?”

“I heard. I overheard Will and El contact Lucas. About your parents’ murders. That’s their blood, isn’t it?”

Steve had stopped walking at this point, making them stand in the middle of the sidewalk. He wasn’t saying anything. Just staring at her. Her eyes widened when she saw the black veins spread from his eyes, looking more like cracks in marble. 

“So what if it is? I made him kill them. I relished in their terror of him. Although it was bothersome that he fought against me. But his parents were right about him,” he knelt down to her eye level, a hand forming a solid form of smoke behind his back, “he’s weak. But he’s proving to be stronger than he looks. Shame. Looks like I’ll have to fix that.”

She couldn’t scream when he hit her head with the weapon, promptly knocking her out. He made sure she wasn’t dead before positioning her on his back, making it look like she just fell asleep and he was giving her a piggyback ride. He walked back to her house and managed to lay her down, slit a bit of his wrist, use his own blood as ink as he wrote,  _ Say bye-bye to your precious girl _ . He would’ve done some overkill by drawing the Mind Flayer but knew he was pressed on being seen. He placed her back on his back, rang the doorbell, and ran off, not seeing the mother open the door to see the message.

All that mattered was getting back to the lab without getting caught. A few bystanders saw him but didn’t question it. They haven’t heard about the murders in Loch Nora yet and weren’t close enough to see the blood, hidden behind Erica’s legs. He carried her to the abandoned building’s basement and walked through the portal. Erica started to wake up, due to the slimy texture rubbing against her skin. She opened her eyes and saw the dark world. She was frozen with terror. Steve was making his way to a field outside of the lab. She felt the white flakes touch her skin. She started to fight against Steve when he was placing her on the ground.

“Don’t fight.”

“Why, so that you could start the same thing you did to those people? Flay them? Melt me?”

“No. Not this time. The people of Hawkins are going to face me on my turf this time. I’m always trying to invade your world but there’s always someone stopping me. So, if someone invades  _ my  _ world, I’ll kill them all here. No one will stop me.”

Erica watched as vines grew out of the ground, making a cage around the two. She stared at the sky, too scared to comprehend the thing above her. There was red lightning flashing and illuminating the monster looming above them. Movement caught her eye and she turned her fearful gaze to the now convulsing Steve. His mouth opened up, and a flurry of smoke left his body and floated through the makeshift bars, up to the larger entity. 

He collapsed and started coughing. Erica went by his side and rubbed his back. He didn’t throw up anything but heart wrenching sobs replaced the dry heaving. He looked up at the girl, still so young and shouldn’t be experiencing this horror.

“I-I’m sorry, Erica. Th-they’re r-right. I-I’m weak. I couldn’t stop him from k-killing my parents. I-I t-tried to stop him from t-taking you.”

Erica pulled him into a hug. “It’s not your fault. You were trying to fight a monster that was possessing you. It was in your body. It’s hard to fight against yourself.”

A dry chuckle escaped Steve’s lips. “When did you get so smart, nerd?”

“Hey, you’re the nerd here.”

“Uh-uh. Don’t think I don’t know about you reading the D&D manual and trying to start a party with your friends. And succeeding.”

She huffed but another lightning flash reminded her of their predicament. “Why am I here?”

Steve looked down, shame filling his body. “I… I think he’s toying with me. He told me that people will look for you and be more willing to come here for you than for me.” He trailed off. Erica was going to say something but he beat her to it. “I think he’ll plan on possessing me again and taking someone else. I don’t want it to happen again. It hurt,  _ so  _ much.”

Erica wasn’t sure what to say to that. When he started crying again, she helped him sit up and leaned against his body.

“They’ll come for the both of us. I know they will.”

======

The local news station broadcasted an emergency update, informing the citizens of Hawkins of the Harrington murders, the suspected possession of Steve Harrington, and Erica Sinclair’s disappearance and the message that was left.

Max was at the Wheeler house when Ted called out for the family and other kids. She, Dustin, Lucas, were in the basement, Nancy was up in her room, Karen and Holly were in the kitchen. She was there when Will and El used the walkie-talkie to tell them (at the time it was just her, Mike, and Dustin) the gist of what happened.

_ “Code Red! Repeat, I have a Code Red. Steve’s in trouble, over.” _

_ “Is he okay? Over.”  _

_ “Don’t worry, he’s safe right now. He’s at our house. Over.” _

_ “What happened? Over.” _

_ “We aren't sure about the specifics but apparently his parents were killed and he was forced to watch.” _

_ “Oh god.” _

Now she was seeing his picture from the police academy yearbook with one of Will’s sketches of the Mind Flayer next to his face. 

“ _ The young adult has not been sighted since leaving the Hopper-Byers home and arriving at the Sinclair family house, presumably taking the youngest child, Erica Sinclair to get ice cream. _ ”

Max turned to face the rest of the group. Most of their mouths were open in shock. Nancy and Lucas were crying. She could hear him whispering, “No… not you too.” 

“ _ Families are warned to stay inside and under no circumstances, go to the bunker. We have been informed that due to the fact that Harrington has been shown the location, it’s not trusted. Keep people inside and have non-lethal weapons on hand. Keep lights off and keep away from windows. If you have seen Harrington, contact Chief Jim Hopper or the rest of the police force, and if you’ve seen Erica Sinclair, contact her parents or any officers. _ ”

Mike ran back to the basement, going to contact his friends. Max went to hug Lucas, who was crying. Nancy did the same with Dustin.

“I w-was with h-him y-yesterday. I sh-should’ve noticed s-something was w-wrong.” He cried out.

Karen faces the boy and makes sure he’s looking at her. “Don’t blame yourself. No one’s at fault except that shadow monster.”

Ted nodded in agreement and got up. “I’m getting the weapons. I’m gonna get the gun as well, just in case.”

Lucas sniffed and faced the man. “Do you happen to have Farrah Fawcett hairspray? It’s a quite effective blinder.”

That got a dry chuckle from the three kids who were at Dustin’s return from his first trip to Camp Know Where. They heard running feet coming up the staircase and Mike was there. He ended up walking over the rest of the way.

“What’s their status?” Dustin inquired.

“They’re fine, just frazzled. Scared. They’re trying to form some sort of plan, as well as what to do with El. She wants to stay and help Steve but they want her safe.”

“That’s understandable. Holly, go around the house and make sure the lights are turned off and make sure doors are locked. I’ll make sure windows are locked. Besides my kids, you call your parents. I’m not letting you outside.”

They nodded and went to do as instructed. Max prayed that Steve and Erica were okay.


End file.
